View full sizeCommuters on I-5 approaching Portland. Federal tax breaks reward car-driving over the use of mass transit.Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian

Big public works projects in Seattle aren't going too
well. Bertha, the underground boring machine at work on the Highway 99 tunnel,
remains stuck. And now a $30 million cost overrun on rebuilding the Elliott
Bay seaway has been discovered. The Seattle Times argues folks should have
known about the costs as far back as early summer, when local politicians possessed
the information but withheld it in advance of the heated mayoral primary.

The Medford Mail Tribune cites its
own news findings that show the grim reality of unemployment in south-central
Oregon. Among other things, the newspaper argues that several employers report
having trouble finding applicants with the right skills in manufacturing,
engineering and other technical fields. And it insists the problem cannot be
solved by government alone – that employers must engage in more training while
applicants must be willing to learn new skills even when starting at the bottom
could mean earning less income.